The great corned tuna battle of 2009

The last time we witnessed a war this cutthroat was more than 3 years ago when the non-soda drinks made an uprising against the ruling colas. That time, it was C2 Green Tea who reigned supreme.

This year, the battleground has moved to the tuna shelves. First, there was San Marino Corned Tuna, which, according to Marian Rivera and Dingdong Dantes, is 1) basically tuna, that tastes like corned beef, and it comes in two variants - the classic and the chili (hat!), and 2) has "less oil, more toona."

Two points that, of course, has been proven true. Open a can of San Marino and the corned beef aroma is "so there", you can almost see it. The can also is filled to the brim with tuna chunks, far from our regular tuna flakes that swim in oil or brine.

But of course, before you open a San Marino, you have to buy one first, which has become a difficult task, especially during the product's introductory phase. Once at SM, San Marino cans literally vanish right after the fillers place them on the blank shelves. Even the SM Supermarket personnel who are always *clap* happy to serve, YES! *air fist* were talking about it. (Girl 1: Huy nakabili ka na ba ng San Marino Corned Tuna?" Girl 2: Hindi pa nga e, ubos lagi.)

And then the walls of Century's kingdom got shaken. Hastily, they served their own corned tuna varieties garnished with half-naked Derek Ramsey. (Ramsay?). "If it's not Century, it's not good enough for me!" he says. Also, they hyped on the brain enhancing DHA and heart-friendly Omega 3.

In the supermarkets, they go head to head. In the photo above, you'll see the Century Corned Tuna sample, being served to shoppers in plastic cups with rice! And of course, San Marino was there too, but they only give you their "free taste" with bits of crackers.

The simultaneous sampling of the two tuna brands gave the shoppers the chance to give their on-the-spot judgment. The common feedback is, if you want the authentic corned beef flavor, San Marino is the brand for you. But if you just want a hint of corned beef, and you still want to be sure that what you're eating is indeed, fish, go with Century.

i love san marino chili corned tuna! compare it with century and it wins hands down - aroma, taste, real tuna flakes. see for yourself... but when you see san marino in the shelves, grab several cans right away, it vanishes like crazy!!